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Two Chinese banking giants, Industrial and Commercial Bank of China and Bank of China, today came closer to naming dates for their upcoming initial public offerings, set to be the largest Asian deals in years.

ICBC, China's largest bank, plans to go public 'at an appropriate time next year', while Bank of China said its IPO would take place in the first half of next year, Reuters reported.

Bank of China last week appointed UBS and Goldman Sachs to arrange its planned IPO.

Senior executives of both banks, two of China's big four state-owned lenders, were speaking at a World Economic Forum conference in Beijing.

ICBC had previously considered holding off on its IPO until 2007, Reuters said.

The Chinese government is encouraging state banks to go public in a bid to shore up their finances ahead of opening up investment in Chinese banks to foreign investors by the end of 2006.

Chinese banks are already seeking the support of strategic foreign investors. Bank of America and Indonesia's state investment agency Temasek have bought stakes in ICBC.

Temasek has also purchased a 10% stake in Bank of China, which has sold a similar stake to a consortium led by Royal Bank of Scotland.